Playful 'Catch The Butterflies' At Lyman Allyn

The Glassenberg Gallery at Lyman Allyn Art Museum in New London has been taken over by a swarm of butterflies.

"Catch the Butterflies," a sweet and fun installation by East Lyme artist Brian Keith Stephens, consists of about 100 ceiling-to-floor scrolls made of mirror-bright silver reflective mylar, silkscreened with thousands of butterflies in Day-Glo colors and lit by black lights. One side of each scroll is painted, the other not, so that the unpainted sides reflect all the other scrolls around them, and reflect whoever passes through the gallery.

The effect is half glow-in-the-dark butterfly sanctuary, half hall of funhouse mirrors. "This is pure fantasy and fun," said museum director D. Samuel Quigley. Just be careful to keep family members together: There are so many scrolls, and they hang so closely together, and they are so reflective, it's easy for even an adult to get lost in the gallery and not be able to find the door.

Last year at Christmastime, the 744-square-foot gallery was full of a stampede of glittery unicorns. Now with the butterfly invasion, it is host to another animal-centric, alternative holiday family attraction.

The exhibit continues downstairs with interactive butterfly flash cards, that can be read only if they are brought upstairs into the blacklight. Also downstairs, the Lyman Allyn has re-installed an elaborate dollhouse that was beloved by many children in past years at the museum.

CATCH THE BUTTERFLIES will be at Lyman Allyn Art Museum, 625 Williams St. in New London, through Jan. 4. lymanallyn.org.

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Playful 'Catch The Butterflies' At Lyman Allyn